Surgical Relocation Module for Equipment Consolidation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Operating rooms face challenges with inefficient equipment placement, cable and hose management, noise from alarms, airflow obstruction, contamination from waste heat and air, and fire hazards due to trapped flammable vapors, which compromise patient safety and staff efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A relocation module system that consolidates patient monitors and equipment under the arm-board of the surgical table, incorporating cable management systems, waste heat and air management, and safety features to eliminate hazards and improve visibility and safety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If anesthesia monitors are placed on a shelf above the anesthesia machine, then the monitors are easily accessible and can be stacked conveniently, but the anesthetist cannot view the monitors while maintaining visual contact with the patient
Solution Approach 1:
The monitor is relocated from the vertical dimension (shelf above anesthesia machine) to the horizontal dimension (surgical field vicinity), allowing the anesthetist to view monitors and patient simultaneously in the same field of vision without requiring vertical stacking or separate viewing locations
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple cables and hoses are used to connect monitors and equipment to the patient, then comprehensive monitoring and treatment functions are provided, but cable and hose tangling creates tripping hazards and contamination risks
Solution Approach 1:
Cables and hoses are extracted from the floor space and routed through overhead booms and wall-mounted conduits, removing the tripping hazard and contamination risk while preserving all monitoring and treatment connections to the patient
Solution Approach 2:
Cable management transitions from horizontal floor-level routing to vertical overhead routing using booms and conduits, elevating cables above the surgical field to eliminate tripping hazards and reduce contamination risk
3Adaptability or versatility
If equipment is scattered throughout the operating room without a plan, then each piece of equipment can be positioned for its specific function, but traffic flow is obstructed and the environment becomes inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The relocation module serves multiple functions simultaneously: it houses anesthesia monitors, provides cable management, manages waste heat and air, and maintains adaptability for various monitoring and treatment equipment, consolidating previously scattered functions into a single integrated system
Solution Approach 2:
Previously separate equipment locations (anesthesia machine, monitors, cable routes, waste heat management) are merged into a single integrated relocation module positioned at the head of the surgical table, improving traffic flow and overall operating room efficiency
4Temperature
If waste heat and air are discharged near the floor, then equipment cooling is achieved, but airborne contaminants are mobilized into the sterile surgical field
Solution Approach 1:
Waste heat and air discharge is relocated from the horizontal floor level to the vertical overhead space, allowing cooling function to be maintained while discharging contaminants away from the sterile surgical field at head level
5Stability of the object's composition
If flammable vapors are trapped under the surgical drape, then the surgical field is maintained, but fire hazards are created
Solution Approach 1:
The relocation module includes a dedicated vapor management system that extracts flammable vapors from under the surgical drape and channels them through filtering and exhaust systems, removing the fire hazard while preserving surgical field integrity
Solution Approach 2:
A filtering and exhaust system acts as an intermediary between the trapped vapors under the drape and the operating room environment, safely removing flammable vapors while maintaining the sealed surgical field
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The module creates a safer environment by optimizing equipment placement, reducing noise and contamination risks, and enhancing visibility for anesthesists, while safely managing waste heat and air to prevent infections and fires.
Implementation Method 1
a fan to propel the waste air through a filter and into a substantially vertical vent tube
Implementation Method 2
a filter to remove airborne contaminants
Data Source
AI summary
Examples of a module for housing unrelated electronic and electromechanical equipment for use during surgery. The module can include a lower section and a tower-like upper section. The lower section can house unrelated electronic and electromechanical equipment. The tower-like upper section can be located on top of the lower section. A water-resistant cowling can enclose at least a portion of the lower section and the tower-like upper section. A cartridge containing one or more ultraviolet-C producing lights can be protectively housed within the tower-like upper section. The cartridge containing one or more ultraviolet-C producing lights can be configured to emerge upward from a top of the tower-like upper section to substantially seat itself on the top of the tower-like upper section when activated allowing the ultraviolet-C light to disinfect the patient and staff-contacting upper surfaces of the equipment in the operating room.